Halo: Spartan Assault released for XBox One on December 24th

halo spartan assault video game somegadgetguy screenshotOne of the best games for Windows Phone and Windows 8 is now making its way to the XBox One this Christmas Eve.

Spartan Assault is a top down arcade style dual stick shooter set in the Halo universe with all of your favorite weapons and power ups. Over 30 missions will be on tap, and 343 Industries has polished up the game to be displayed in glorious 1080p at 60fps. Console gamers will also have access to a new online co-op mode to plow through missions with their bestest pals on Live. You lucky dogs.

This new take on Halo will launch at $15, but if you’ve already purchased the game for Windows Phone or Windows 8 (or purchase it before Dec. 15) you can get it for $5. If you’ve been looking forward to Halo: Spartan Assault, you should really jump on buying it now as you can schnag it for Windows 8 and XBox for$12, instead of $15 for the XBox standalone version.

Check the teaser trailer below.

AT&T Customers Can Now Roam in Canada on Roger’s LTE Network

ATT logoMarking the first international partnership for LTE roaming, AT&T customers can now sign up for discounted rates on Rogers’ 4G network when traveling through Canada.

Covering 70% of Canadian’s, Rogers will be lighting up LTE in 95 markets over this next year. For you world travelers, an AT&T Data Global Add-On package should help take some of the fear out of using your smartphone while on a trip. We all know someone who came home to find an outrageous bill because they used their phone overseas.

The packages  are tiered 120MB for $30/mo; 300MB for $60/mo; and 800MB for $120/mo, and are good in over 150 countries, but of course traveling to Canada will guarantee you the four gees speed.

Full PR after the jump.

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Weekly Tech Round Table Dec 7, 2013: Prime Air, Windows Threshold, Nexus TV, and AT&T Data Plans

booredatwork roundtableTime for our weekly tech round table discussion with Boored at WorkBWOneMobile Burn, and yours truly.

Every Saturday at 8:30 am Pacific, we discuss the week’s biggest tech stories! This week we talk up Amazon’s drone program, Microsoft unifying Windows Phone and Windows 8, What Google is trying to do to your living room, and AT&T’s new cheaper mobile share plans!

Lot’s to cover this week, so let’s get to it!

AT&T Overhauls Mobile Share Plans, Cuts Prices

att mobile share plansSimplifying is the name of the game over at Big Blue.

Customers bringing their own phone, or who have paid off their phone from a previous contract might save as much as $25 per line compared to the previous AT&T Mobile Share plans. Starting December 8th, the new rates go into effect. All plans include unlimited talk and text, and are tiered solely by how much data you want to pool.

Starting at $20 a month for 300MB and climbing up to 50GB for $375, the rates for individual devices has been simplified too. Smartphones off contract will cost $25 a month and smartphones on contract will cost $40 a month. So an individual who bought a phone outright on the lowest tier data plan will pay $45 a month.

Tablets can be added to share your data for $10 a month, and additional feature phones, home phones, and mobile hotspots can be added for $20. All in all a pretty decent combo for AT&T customers. Plans which are easier to understand, and you’re going to save a little cash at the same time.

Full PR after the jump

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PSA: Last month to enjoy ad-free Pandora music streaming for free on Windows Phone!

c4e43008-640c-43e4-af1e-a963de3b3189Months ago, to celebrate the arrival of a proper app, Pandora offered up ad-free streaming for all Windows Phone users through the end of the year!

Well that means you only have a couple weeks left to enjoy commercial-free tunes if you’re rocking some Live Tiles. Fire up the app and start rocking out! Starting January 1 2014, you’ll either have to listen to commercials or pony up some cash.

Pandora on Windows Phone

AT&T EverThere: protecting Senior Citizens with advanced fall detection, Emergency care center calling

photo_01We’re a long way evolved from Life Call’s “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up”.

Utilizing a smartphone style data connection, AT&T’s EverThere is bringing some tech sophistication to the discussion of health and personal monitoring. Each year, one third of adults over the age of 65 experience falls, many of which can cause serious injuries. EverThere brings a combination of GPS and movement tracking to help aid in the first aid response.

Like a fitness tracker, EverThere can detect movement, so in the event of a fall, paramedics can be alerted automatically. Unlike more home-based monitoring, the unit includes GPS so if a Senior family member is hurt while out and about, they location can be easily found. Connected to AT&T’s network, EverThere users can get help anywhere there’s a cellphone connection. A small, lightweight puck-like device can be worn on a chain or clipped to a belt, and the unit is battery powered for up to 36 hours.

Lastly, EverThere is an IP67 ruggedly built gadget, making it drop resistant, freeze resistant, and waterproof. It’s all about piece of mind, and you don’t want to have to worry about your emergency communication gadget getting damaged while in the middle of an emergency.

Prices start at $99 on an 11 month contract and a monthly rate of $29.99 for the EverThere service.

Full PR after the jump.

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Windows Phone Breaks 10% Market Share in Europe, Apple Slipping

ComTech-des13-dataHappy day for Nokia!

Kantar Worldpanel announced sales figures for the fiscal quarter ending October of 2013. Windows Phone has yet to break 5% here in the states, but we did almost double the number of Windows Phones sold here. The news in Europe is much more exciting for Microsoft fans. This same period last year, WP was floating around 4.8%, and moving into 2013 sales more than doubled with Microsoft cracking 10.2%.

Bolstered by some fantastic low end Nokia phones like the Lumia 520, Windows phone is rocking 11.9% in Great Britain, 12.5% in France, and 16% in Italy.

The news for Apple wasn’t quite as rosy. While sales are generally up fr the iPhone, they’re losing share in almost every major market. Down 6% in the USA, 3% in China, and 5% in Europe. The 5S is also unsurprisingly outselling the 5C more than three to one, it would seem that Apple is missing out on the hot smartphone growth sectors in the entry-level and mid-range.

Of course Android is continuing it’s domination in every major market tracked, but it’s nice seeing Microsoft step up as a potential competitor to the Android / iOS power struggle.

(via Kantar Worldpanel)

 

Moto X Cyber Monday Crash & Burn, CEO Apologizes by Repeating Promo Wednesday Dec 4th

moto x cyber monday sale motorolaI guess you can have too much of a good thing. For Moto, this meant too many customers trying to take advantage of yesterday’s Moto X promo. People flocked to score a Moto X for $350 unlocked, and unfortunately Moto Maker just couldn’t handle the strain.

In a letter released last night Moto CEO Dennis Woodside issued a formal apology to all the customers who weren’t able to properly place their orders, and promised to correct the problem. They’ll be improving MotoMaker’s ability to handle large numbers of customers, and they’ll be doubling the number of phones that will be available for the promotion.

On Wednesday, December 4th at 9am Pacific time the Moto X will once again be on sale for $350 unlocked for the 16GB model on any network with any color combination. Mark your calendars. Apparently this is shaping up to be a popular sale.

Full Motorola apology letter after the jump.

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